The Conflict Eternal
by DagonKin
Summary: When Humanity reached the stars, they quickly realized they were not alone. First Contact was not peaceful; the Ethereals quickly took notice of a species developing along a different path than the one planned by the 'Great Enemy'. They invaded Earth, seeking to uplift humanity - to enslave them. They failed, their invasion broken, sparking a war that has spanned millenina.


**This is a Naruto, Harry Potter, X-Com, and Mass Effect crossover.**

 **You've been warned.**

* * *

 **Sol System, Asteroid Belt, Year 3561 of the Era of the Third Sage;**

The _Vulcan;_ a massive mobile shipyard, capable of producing a full squadron of Firestorm Mark VII Starfighters in a single week. Alternatively, it could produce a small fleet of frigates complete with a full complement of SHIV's in a month. However, what was being produced now was a monstrosity of a super dreadnought that may very well have deserved its own naval classification.

Seven kilometers long, 865 meters wide and 630 meters tall, the dreadnought, tentatively named _The Warhammer_ was the first of its design - a prototype, in other words. It was designed to be a capital ship capable of sitting on the front lines of the Ethereal Warzone for an indefinite period, equipped with everything that would be necessary to respond to any kind of Ethereal threat.

It had fifty-four decks, not counting docking bays, and a crew requirement of thirty-five thousand hands, though eighty-five thousand was preferable given the complex nature of the spatial expansion charms layered throughout. An even larger crew was better yet, given that the ship had bays for over three-thousand high-energy elerium cannons per broadside, as well as a series of seven spine mounted rune-based mass accelerators that could fire conjured unbreakable spikes at speeds of up to 45% of the speed of light.

Liberal use of cooling runes rendered any heat emissions null and void, and computer assisted dynamic color changing charms made the hull blend into the darkness of space around it, leaving the ship virtually invisible without the ability to detect magic. Once fully constructed, _The Warhammer_ would be capable of docking a fleet of twelve dreadnoughts between 750 and 1200 meters in length, twenty-eight heavy cruisers, fifty frigates, and countless Firestorm Mark VII's and unmanned fighters, requiring an additional crew of at least fifty thousand.

It was the single biggest military initiative in the past four hundred years, and was the brainchild of engineering legend Lily Shen. Operating it would be impossible without the highly sophisticated AI's developed by both Lily Shen and her father, Raymond Shen, another legend in the engineering field.

"And how long until it's complete?" a man with ebony hair and green eyes asked.

"We're slightly ahead of schedule, sir," Chief Engineer Lily Shen replied. "We should have the hull finished within two weeks, then we can get the Runemasters and Sealmasters to come in and double check and power the runes. Once they've done that, we project another five months to get the interior walls and circuitry installed, and then the Runemasters and Sealmasters will come back with the Enchanters to charm and enchant the interior space."

"Good. There was a sighting of another Ethereal Temple Ship near Shanxi recently, so we're deploying _The Illusion, The Revenge,_ and _The Maelstrom_ to reinforce the colony's defense fleet in case the Ethereals try something," the man replied. "Keep up the good work, Lily. Let me know if anything changes."

"Yes, Commander."

Commander Harry Potter, son of the legendary Lily Potter, who herself made her impact on history during the Ethereal War of First Contact as the commander of the X-Com Initiative, sighed as he left the construction bay. Project Revitalize, the initiative for the construction of _The Warhammer_ was a human resources nightmare. The sheer number of wizards and witches needed to permanently conjure or transfigure metals and alloys on board _The Vulcan_ had been more than doubled since the construction had started, and they still needed more.

That Temple Ship spotted near the colony on Shanxi was really throwing a wrench into the war effort with the Ethereals. All things considered, recalling three dreadnoughts from the battlefront was nearly negligible when one considered that there were slightly over two-hundred dreadnoughts stationed in and around the Zeta Achelois cluster, where most of the Ethereal sightings were. Only two dreadnoughts were really necessary, but Harry had a bad feeling about Shanxi, and he'd long ago learned to trust his gut.

He didn't have the Sight, as it was now called - the ability to peer into the fourth dimension to see what once was, what now is, and that which has not yet come to pass, but it was generally accepted that most magicals had a sixth sense when it came to life-changing events.

He had no idea how correct that feeling would be

* * *

 **Two Months Later, Shanxi System**

"Temple Ship sighted thirty-thousand klicks off the starboard bow!"

"I want firing resolutions calculated for a warp broadside!" General Arthur Williams of _The Revenge_ commanded.

"Roger, wilco," a technician responded. "Calculating now, transmitting resolutions to _The Illusion_ and _The Maelstrom_." After a moment of silence, she spoke again. "Confirmation received, firing resolutions locked in. Warp commencing in five, four, three, two, one. Warp commencing."

There was a momentary sensation of falling, as if one was sitting down on a chair that was shorter than they thought, and then suddenly the Temple Ship was easily visible to the naked eye a mere two kilometers off the starboard bow.

"Commencing broadside firing resolutions," the technician continued calmly. There was a blinding flash of light as runic arrays lit up as power flowed through them. Half a second later, Williams was left seeing spots as a barrage of conjured material collided with the Temple Ship's shields, causing them to flare with an intensity to match Earth's sun. "Warp commencing!" the technician warned.

After another brief falling sensation, _The Revenge_ was once more thirty-thousand klicks away from the Temple Ship. "Report!" Williams demanded.

"Sensors indicate minimal damage. It appears their kinetic shields were at full power and managed to absorb most of the physical barrage. What did get through was so slowed that it merely scratched their hull. Our magical assault fared better, but had similar results because we primarily focused power into the physical cannons and not the spell matrices, sir," another technician answered.

"Redirect more power into the spell matrices," Williams commanded. "We've lost the element of surprise, but the fact that their shields were at full power indicates we never had it."

"Incoming request for a direct communication line with _The Illusion_ from _The Maelstrom_ , Sir!" an aide announced. At William's nod, she pressed a button. "Patching through to our systems."

A holograph containing two individuals faded into existence in the center of the Command Deck of _The Revenge._ Likewise, a similar scene could be found on both _The Illusion_ and _The Maelstrom_. One of them was a man, the other a woman. They were General Fuyuki Soto, a highly decorated strategist descended from the Nara Clan of Elementia, and Fleet Admiral Jaquelyn Heartwood, a prodigy whose rise through the ranks was equalled only by her talent with magic, commanding officers of _The Illusion_ and _The Maelstrom_ respectively.

"General Williams," Fuyuki greeted with a grave nod. He had an elderly appearance and a noble bearing, dressed in a high quality yukata, one likely loaded with so many enchantments as to be stronger than titanium. "Fleet Admiral Heartwood," he directed a nod of similar severity towards the woman.

"Fuyuki, my old friend, it's good to see you. It's been far too long," she replied. She was clad in glossy robes that looked to have been made from acromantula silk, well known for their resistance to both magic and chakra. Directing her attention towards Williams, she continued. "You as well, Arthur. You look as hale as ever."

"And your beauty is a wonder to behold," Williams replied, smirking as he saw her lips quirk slightly upward. "We're changing our primary weapons energy distribution," he continued after a pause. "A ridiculously large portion of our physical weaponry was negated by that shield that they're maintaining. A shield that, by all indications, they shouldn't have the power to maintain."

"We've been looking into this, and it appears that they are draining the Mass Gate's generators as an energy source," Heartwood stated by way of explanation.

"Wonderful," Williams said sarcastically. "I swear that whatever built those Gates had magic. The only way we've been able to even scratch them is by channelling ridiculous amounts of magic or chakra into them - ridiculous by even Kage or Archmage standards, that is."

"We do not need to destroy the Gate," Fuyuki quietly interjected. "We merely need to stop the Temple Ship from draining the Gate's generators."

"A good point," Heartwood agreed, before a problem presented itself. "How are they draining the Gate?"

Williams turned towards a technician at the sensor map. "Divert primary energy distribution from our weapons towards our sensors - I want to know everything there is to know about the Gate, from the smallest dust particle to the minutest energy wave, on the double!"

"If it's a physical connection, then there's no feasible way for the Ethereals to include the gate in their shield. If that is the situation, I suggest that _The Revenge_ and _The Illusion_ fire upon the Temple Ship, while the _The Maelstrom_ tows the Gate away," Heartwood proposed.

"And if it isn't a physical connection?" Fuyuki asked.

After a moment of silence, she answered, "We'll cross that bridge if we reach it."

It was several minutes later when the technician spoke up again. "General, sir, it appears that the Ethereals are using some sort of psionic drain affect to siphon energy off of the Gate, but it doesn't make sense. They're essentially using the Drain ability on it, and that shouldn't do a thing - it only works on living things, things capable of thought, of making decisions."

"When a theory does not fit the facts, you cannot change the facts to fit the theory; you must change the theory to fit the facts. Thus, we must conclude that the Gate is actually alive, and their psionics are responsible for the energy drain," Fuyuki said slowly. "We must disrupt their psionics - a powerful enough energy wave should sever the link, at least temporarily."

"Calibrate your spell matrices to neutralize the psionic wave, General Soto," Heartwood commanded. " _The Revenge_ and _The Maelstrom_ will focus fire on the Temple Ship when you have disrupted their shields."

"Understood," Fuyuki aceded. "Neutralizing in thirty seconds, countdown beginning on my mark. Mark."

Thirty-point-five seconds later, there was an explosion of light centered around the Temple Ship as both _The Revenge_ and _The Maelstrom_ opened fire upon it, its shields slowly warping before winking out of existence under the barrage of magical and mechanical weapon fire.

"Temple Ship is suffering from severe damage and limping," Williams stated, more as a note than anything. "I estimate one more barrage and they'll be falling apart."

"I'm getting an energy buildup from the Gate!" Heartwood exclaimed. "They're trying to take the Gate somewhere! Stop them!"

"We cannot," Fuyuki said lowly. "We are unable to acquire firing resolutions in time to stop them from entering the Gate, and once inside, they will be out of our reach, travelling much faster than our projectiles - better to simply deactivate the Gate once they are gone."

"We have missiles incoming!" a technician on _The Maelstrom_ shouted. "Transferring energy to shields!" A moment later, she continued, "Shields at sixty percent and rising, we should be able to weather this without serious damage. Brace for impact in five, four, three, two, on-"

A massive explosion cut her off as static frizzled across the holograph. Williams turned to one of his own technicians, eyes hard as he spoke with a growl in his throat. "What happened? Their cannons have never been powerful enough to shred through our shields that quickly!"

After a frantic moment, the man responded slowly, incredulity tinging his voice. "They didn't shred _The Maelstrom's_ shields. They just… passed through them as if they weren't even there. I don't understand it - it doesn't make sense!"

"What's _The Maelstrom's_ status?" Williams demanded.

"Sensors are reading heavy damage to the hull and engine room, as well as a handful of hull breaches that are venting gases. All in all, it's nothing a handful of strong reparo's wouldn't handle, but in order for them to be done right they need to be done in a dock. Otherwise, we're looking at months of time wasted at a repair dock."

There was a flicker of light as Fleet Admiral Heartwood's holograph returned to life. " _The Maelstrom_ is a sitting duck here!" she yelled over the sound of blaring alarms. "We have life support, but no propulsion. Arthur, I'm ordering you to secure the system - deactivate the gate and launch long-range psionic sensors. Fuyuki, I want to transfer my crew to _The Illusion_ and get _The Maelstrom_ towed to _The Vulcan._ Standby for incoming portkeys."

"Understood, Admiral," Fuyuki acknowledged. "Maintaining position two kilometers from the bow of _The Maelstrom_ , transmitting coordinates." Williams couldn't see it, but knew from the flicker in Heartwood's holograph that she and her crew had portkeyed over to _The Illusion._

"Send a cruiser to deactivate the Gate," he said to his aide, a young man named Charles Westford. After a nod, he turned towards the holograph of Heartwood. "Orders received and acknowledged, Fleet Admiral. I'll be moving out once you're gone."

In the background, he heard a technician on _The Illusion_ speak up. "Preparing for Warp Jump with _The Maelstrom_ in tow. Jumping in ten seconds!"

After a short delay and a brief flash of light, both _The Illusion_ and _The Maelstrom_ had vanished.

* * *

 **Hand of Palaven, Command Bridge**

Desolas Arterius withheld a groan as his eyes scanned the orders he had recently received. Apparently, a probe had picked up some strange readings from Relay-314, a known deactivated relay. That it included energy emissions that suggested that someone had used the relay to jump somewhere just made the issue worse.

"We're entering the system containing Relay-314 now, sir," his aide, a man named Kavus Alecolus announced. "We'll be approaching sublight speeds in thirty seconds, and will be able to receive sensor data then," he continued, oblivious to his superiors frustration.

"Good. Now get out," Arterius growled. "Only interrupt me if you find something important."

Much to his anger, his aide returned a mere fifteen minutes later. "Sir, preliminary reports indicate a planet in-system has life on it. Given the limited presence of geosynchronous satellites of non-standard design, we believe that this is the homeworld of a non-council species."

That grabbed his attention. "A non-council species, you say?" A nod was the response he got. "A non-council species, their homeworld within striking distance of space claimed by the Turian Hierarchy. I believe that it is time to expand Turian borders, don't you think?"

"Sir, Council Law dictates that all efforts to promote a peaceful First Contact situation must be made. A declaration of war would be breaking numerous doctrines!" Kavus protested strenuously.

"The Council won't know until we've already subjugated the primitive backwater species that lives here. Look at the reports - their Eezo development is barely spaceworthy!" Arterius countered, growling. "By that point, it'll be far too late for them to do anything, and all we'll get is a slap on the wrist - at best!"

"As you command, Sir," Kavus relented. There was a beep, and both turned as one towards their omni-tools.

Arterius laughed darkly as he read the message. "Well then. If an inferior species were to break Council Laws, then we should not have to worry about the consequences of teaching them the error of their ways. Tampering with a Mass Relay will afford them no goodwill." Facing his aide once more, his posture took on a more regal bearing. "We will 'investigate' this 'unknown' group tampering with a Mass Relay - their non-standard ship designs will suggest that they were a group of Batarian Slavers seeking to flee from Turian Justice by breaking Council Law."

He stepped out of the Captain's Quarters. "We shall afford them no quarter."

* * *

 **AN:** This is more of a plot bunny that's been stuck in my head for a while now. It may or may not be continued, depending entirely upon if I can develop an actual plot to follow.


End file.
